Union Minister for Textiles, Giriraj Singh, has stated that Japanese businesses are very interested in investing in India’s expanding textile industry. The Minister stated that India-Japan textile trade connections have been robust for a long time while inaugurating the 16th edition of the India Tex Trend Fair (ITTF) in Tokyo.
The Minister is on an official visit to Japan, commencing on the 14th of July. He started with the Indian Embassy in Tokyo, where he presided over a briefing on India-Japan cooperation and textile industry prospects given by Ambassador Sibi George.
The chairman, president, and chief executive officer of Fast Retailing Co. Ltd., one of the top clothing retailers in the world, Tadashi Yanai, was then invited to a strategic meeting. The expansion of Fast Retailing’s sourcing, manufacturing, and retail activities in India was the main topic of debate.
In addition, he met with the top management team of Stylem Co. Ltd., a prominent textile trading and OEM business, and extended an invitation to them to increase their involvement with India through PM MITRA Parks and other government programs.
The Minister also had a crucial meeting with the directors of Daiso Industries, who revealed their intentions to start 200 stores and produce cotton goods in India. The Minister urged them to take use of India’s textile incentives and infrastructure.
In order to promote investments in technical textiles, fibre manufacturing, and textile machines, he also presided over an engaging roundtable with the CEOs of significant Japanese textile and clothing enterprises and met with the leadership team of Asahi KASEI, a US $ 20 billion conglomerate which makes fibres as a part of its product line.
“There is an ecosystem like 7 PM MITRA Parks with an area encompassing 1,000 to 2,000 acres of each unit, where the expected investment is of Rs. 1 lakh crore (US $ ), creating almost 12 lakh jobs. The Japanese investors will get all facilities including benefits of the state government subsidies — like labour and electricity subsidy, etc,” the Minister emphasised.
With an annual growth rate of 6% and strong domestic demand, India’s economy is projected to continue to expand quickly, according to Sibi George, the country’s ambassador to Japan.
The Indian textile industry offers enormous potential, according to Rohit Kansal, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Textiles. Any buyer or investor would be drawn to its end-to-end value chain capabilities, sizable local market, robust export presence, and ability to produce sustainably and efficiently, he said.
